The San Jose Sharks will be without team captain Logan Couture on a week-to-week basis as he continues to recover from a groin injury, San Jose Hockey Now’s Sheng Peng reported Monday.
Couture, 34, has skated in just six games with the Sharks this season, collecting one assist. As Peng noted in his report on Monday, Couture has been dealing with a “deep groin issue” for most of the year to date.
The Sharks initially got Couture back from his extended injury-related absence in the middle of January. He played more than 15 minutes per night in each of the team’s last six games before the All-Star break.
Now, with the Sharks finally set to return from their two-week break against the Winnipeg Jets on Wednesday, Couture is back on the shelf. Wednesday’s game between the Sharks and Jets is slated for 4:30 p.m. PT at Canada Life Centre in Winnipeg.
The Sharks stumbled badly out of the gate to start the 2023-24 regular season with many of their key players, Couture included, dealing with injury issues.
Although they’ve since been supplanted for last place in the National Hockey League by the Chicago Blackhawks, the Sharks still rank among the league’s worst teams with a 14-32-5 record and 33 points in 51 games.
Even now, it isn’t just Couture out of the lineup. Earlier on Monday, the Sharks placed top center Tomas Hertl on injured reserve as he prepares to undergo a surgical procedure on his left knee.
In many ways, this year is all about the future for the Sharks. They’re on pace to make one of the top selections in the 2024 NHL Draft and could be positioned to recoup assets for Mikael Granlund, Anthony Duclair, Mike Hoffman, Jan Rutta, and MacKenzie Blackwood ahead of the March 8 trade deadline.
The Sharks originally selected Couture with the No. 9 overall pick in the 2007 NHL Draft. The 6’1” center is under contract through 2027 at an $8 million cap hit and has collected 323 goals and 701 points in 933 career games with the Sharks.
More must-reads: